A new contest record
686.2860
highest overall ever cooked here
686.2860 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 678.2854 SMOKE ON WHEELS set in 2013.
- old record 678.2854
- set 2013 by SMOKE ON WHEELS
Big Blue BBQ Championship 2014
Jun 6–7, 2014 · Marysville, KS
SMOKE ON WHEELS won Grand Champion at the Big Blue BBQ Championship on June 6, 2014 in Marysville, KS, scoring 686.2860 in a field of 25 teams. FRONT DOOR GANG took Reserve Grand Champion with 674.2972. Category winners: Chicken — SMOKE ON WHEELS (173.1428); Pork Ribs — DAWGHOUSE BBQ (173.1428); Pork — GREAT PLAINS BBQ (176.0344); Brisket — SMOKE ON WHEELS (172.5716). This is the 2nd of 14 editions of this contest on record; the 2013 edition was won by SMOKE ON WHEELS; the next was held in 2015.
The contest at a glance (read off the scored boards)
How the field scored
Overall totals, every team on the board — tall stacks are where the pack sat.
577.66
median 645.73
686.29 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 173.14
- Pork Ribs 173.14
- Pork 176.03
- Brisket 172.57
137.10
176.03
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2013 to 2026 — this edition picked out.
Entries
25
4 judged meats
Top score
686.2860
Winning margin
11.9888
GC over RC
Field average
640.03
577.66686.29
median 645.73 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Pork Ribs
3.4284 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
653.1316
577.66686.29
10th place overall
Field spread
108.6288
winner to last place
Double threats
6
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 79%
beats 21% of 4711 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
40%
12 of 30 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.79 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,538
avg power rating going in · stronger than 28% of contests
Storylines (9 found in this contest's numbers)
Everything below is read straight out of the results — the number on each card is the one that made it a story.
Back-to-back
2 in a row
editions of this contest
SMOKE ON WHEELS won here last time out too — 2 straight editions of this contest.
- 2013
- 2014
A statement win
11.9888
points clear of the field
Wider than 92% of the 4,710 championships in the data
The champion won by 11.9888 points — a wider margin than 92% of championships in the data.
A dynasty in the making
4×
wins at this contest
4 of 13 tracked editions
GETTIN' BASTED has won this contest 4 times across its 13 tracked editions.
- 2016
- 2017
- 2018
- 2023
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 6 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 2–3: PORKY MCBEEF AND THE CLUCKERS and R BUTTS R SMOKIN tied on 171.4056 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 2–3: GRAUERS' HOGWASH BARBEQUE edged THE SMOKING HILLS by 0.0228. Chicken places 6–7: FRONT DOOR GANG edged WILD BLUE by 0.0344.
- Chicken 2–3 · tie
- Pork Ribs 2–3 · 0.0228
- Chicken 6–7 · 0.0344
- Pork 1–2 · 0.0344
A double category winner
2
category wins in a day
SMOKE ON WHEELS won Chicken, Brisket — a double, and took the Grand Championship on top of it.
- Chicken 1st
- Brisket 1st
How the title was won
3 of 4
meats called to the stage
SMOKE ON WHEELS took the title on 3 calls from 4 meats, with 2 outright wins — their weakest board was pork ribs at 11th.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 11th
- Pork 3rd
- Brisket 1st
A contest record in brisket
172.5716
best brisket ever cooked here
SMOKE ON WHEELS turned in 172.5716 in brisket — past the 172.5714 that had stood across 1 earlier editions.
- old best 172.5714
- across 1 past editions
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: SMOKE ON WHEELS (won 2013).
- SMOKE ON WHEELS · 2013
This contest's own records (2 in the KCBS record book)
Records held by every edition of this contest put together, not just this one afternoon.
Score curves (score by finishing position — steep cliffs mean a spread field, flat lines a knife fight)
Category showdown (top / average / median score per meat)
Score distribution
Biggest rating movers (power-rating points won and lost at this contest)
Did form hold? (pre-contest rating vs overall finish — ratings called it if the dots climb to the right)
This contest over the years full contest page →
| Date | Where | Venue | Teams | High score | Grand Champion | Reserve Champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 2013 | Marysville, KS | Marysville, KS | 30 | 678.2854 | SMOKE ON WHEELS | PELLET ENVY |
| Jun 6, 2014 ← this one | Marysville, KS | Marysville, KS 66508 | 25 | 686.2860 | SMOKE ON WHEELS | FRONT DOOR GANG |
| Jun 5, 2015 | Marysville, KS | Marysville, KS 66508 | 30 | 681.0516 | THE SMOKING HILLS | DODGE COUNTY SMOKERS |
| Jun 3, 2016 | Marysville, KS | 7th & Bradway | 30 | 696.5484 | GETTIN' BASTED | R BUTTS R SMOKIN |
| Jun 2, 2017 | Marysville, KS | 7th & Broadway | 35 | 699.4056 | GETTIN' BASTED | THE SMOKING HILLS |
| Jun 1, 2018 | Marysville, KS | 7th & Broadway | 42 | 708.0344 | GETTIN' BASTED | BOOMERANG BBQ |
| May 31, 2019 | Marysville, KS | 7th Street, Downtown | 29 | 696.5028 | The Smoking Hills | GETTIN' BASTED |
| Jun 4, 2021 | Marysville, KS | 7th Street, Downtown | 28 | 697.6688 | 4 Legs Up BBQ | THE SMOKING HILLS |
| Jun 3, 2022 | Marysville, KS | 101 N. 10th Street | 25 | 697.1432 | When Pigs Die | THE SMOKING HILLS |
| Jun 2, 2023 | Marysville, KS | 617 Broadway | 28 | 697.6688 | Gettin' Basted | LOVE 2 Q |
| May 31, 2024 | Marysville, KS | 617 Broadway | 25 | 706.2400 | SLAPS BBQ | GETTIN' BASTED |
| Jun 6, 2025 | Marysville, KS | 617 Broadway | 29 | 702.8000 | Damn Fine Beef & Swine | THE SMOKING HILLS |
| Jun 5, 2026 | Marysville, KS | 615 11th Road | 25 | 698.2056 | TRIPLE H BBQ | JANKY LEG BBQ |
| Jun 4, 2027 | Marysville, KS | — | — | — | — | — |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 173.1428 | 166.2972 | 161.7028 |
| Pork Ribs | 173.1428 | 169.7144 | 165.1772 |
| Pork | 176.0344 | 171.9656 | 164.0116 |
| Brisket | 172.5716 | 165.6800 | 161.0972 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
25 entries · top 686.2860 · median 645.7260
Chicken
25 entries · top 173.1428 · median 159.9772
Pork Ribs
25 entries · top 173.1428 · median 164.0344
Pork
25 entries · top 176.0344 · median 160.5600
Brisket
25 entries · top 172.5716 · median 158.2400